Christopher Michael Carp (born June 30, 1986) is an American

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

and

left fielder In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...

who is currently a free agent. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) for the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The team joined the American League as an expansion team ...

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...

and Texas Rangers.

Professional career

New York Mets

After attending Lakewood High School in Lakewood, California, Carp was drafted by the Mets in the ninth round of the 2004 Major League Baseball Draft (254th overall). He hit 19

Home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s in only 313 at bats as a 19-year-old playing with the

Hagerstown Suns The Hagerstown Suns were a Minor League Baseball team based in Hagerstown, Maryland. They were a member of the South Atlantic League and, from 2007 through 2020, were the Class A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They played their home ga ...

, and won the Sterling Award as Mets organization player of the year following his season with the St. Lucie Mets. In that season he hit .287 (141-491) with 69 runs scored, 27

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * ...

s, one

triple Triple is used in several contexts to mean "threefold" or a " treble": Sports * Triple (baseball), a three-base hit * A basketball three-point field goal * A figure skating jump with three rotations * In bowling terms, three strikes in a row * ...

, 17 home runs and 88

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the ba ...

. In March 2007 he attended Major League

training camp A training camp is an organized period in which military personnel or athletes participate in a rigorous and focused schedule of training in order to learn or improve skills. Athletes typically utilise training camps to prepare for upcoming events, ...

for the first time, hitting .233 in 43 at bats with the Mets. His season with the

Binghamton Mets The Binghamton Rumble Ponies are an American Minor League Baseball team based in Binghamton, New York. The team, which plays in the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the New York Mets major-league club. The Rumble Ponies play in Mirab ...

of the Double-A Eastern League would be somewhat derailed by a broken finger, which he felt affected his swing even after returning from the disabled list. Carp hit .251/.337/.387/.725 (90 for 359, 55 runs, 16 2b, 11 HR, 48 RBI, 39/75 BB/K) with Binghamton. He played with the

Scottsdale Scorpions The Scottsdale Scorpions are a baseball team that plays in the East Division of the Arizona Fall League. They play their home games in Scottsdale, Arizona, at Scottsdale Stadium, which is also the spring training facility of the San Francisco Gia ...

of the

Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season sports league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during the autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are fille ...

during the fall. Carp enjoyed a great bounceback season in 2008, setting career highs in average, on-base percentage, OPS, doubles, homers, and walks. For the season, Carp hit .299/.403/.471/.874 (143 for 478, 67 runs, 29 2b, 3b, 17 HR, 72 RBI, 79/88 BB/K).

Seattle Mariners

On December 10, , Carp was traded to the Seattle Mariners in a three-team trade which also included RHP J. J. Putz, RHP Sean Green and OF

Jeremy Reed Jeremy Thomas Reed (born June 15, 1981) is an American former professional baseball outfielder in Major League Baseball (MLB). Early life Reed graduated from Bonita High School in La Verne, California in 1999, and went on to play college basebal ...

from the Mariners for RHP

Aaron Heilman Aaron Michael Heilman (born November 12, 1978) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Heilman was drafted by the New York Mets out of Notre Dame in 2001. He came up through the Mets system as a starting pitcher, but was converted to ...

, OF

Endy Chávez Endy de Jesus Chávez Meza (; born February 7, 1978), is a Venezuelan former professional baseball outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City Royals, Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals, Philadelphia Phillies, New ...

, LHP

Jason Vargas Jason Matthew Vargas (born February 2, 1983) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Florida Marlins, Seattle Mariners, Los Angeles Angels, Kansas City Royals, New York Mets and Ph ...

, OF Ezequiel Carrera and RHP Maikel Cleto and sent RHP Joe Smith to the Indians. He made his major league debut with the Mariners on June 17, 2009, pinch-hitting in a game against the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...

and drawing a walk. He got a hit, a single to center in his first major league start the next day. On September 1, Carp was called up a second time. He went 0 for 4 against the

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team h ...

that same night. On June 8, 2011, Carp was called up to replace outfielder Mike Wilson. He has also served as a replacement at the first base position for starter

Justin Smoak Justin Kyle Smoak (born December 5, 1986) is an American professional baseball first baseman who is currently a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers, Seattle Mariners, Toronto Blue Jays, Milwaukee Brewer ...

. Carp was named the American League Rookie of the Month in August, during which he had a 20-game

hitting streak In baseball, a hitting streak is the number of consecutive official games in which a player appears and gets at least one base hit. According to the Official Baseball Rules, such a streak is not necessarily ended when a player has at least 1 pla ...

, batting .313 and driving in 25 runs. On September 19, 2011, Carp hit his first grand slam against the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...

at Progressive Field.

Boston Red Sox

On February 20, 2013, Carp was acquired by the

for a

player to be named later In Major League Baseball, a player to be named later (PTBNL) is an unnamed player involved in exchange or "trade" of players between teams. The terms of a trade are not finalized until a later date, most often following the conclusion of the seaso ...

or cash considerations. He made his Red Sox debut on April 7 versus the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

. On June 4, 2013, Carp earned his first career ejection for arguing a strike three call made by

umpire An umpire is an official in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The term derives from the Old French nonper, ''non'', "not" and ''per'', ...

Andy Fletcher Andrew Fletcher may refer to: Government * Andrew Fletcher, Lord Innerpeffer (died 1650), Scottish judge * Andrew Fletcher (patriot) (1655–1716), Scottish writer, politician and patriot * Andrew Fletcher, British Member of Parliament for Haddin ...

. On September 11, 2013, Carp hit a go-ahead grand slam to dead center off pitcher Roberto Hernandez of the

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home v ...

to put ahead the

Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

and eventually win the game in the 10th inning. Carp served as a backup first baseman, outfielder, and pinch hitter for the 2013 Red Sox, appearing in 86 regular season games and six postseason games as the team won the

2013 World Series The 2013 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2013 season. The 109th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League (AL) champion Boston Red Sox and the National Le ...

. On April 24, 2014, in the ninth inning against the

Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

Fenway Park Fenway Park is a baseball stadium located in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, near Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the home of the Boston Red Sox, the city's American League baseball team, and since 1953, its only Major League Bas ...

, Carp appeared as a

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weat ...

after the Red Sox had used all their relievers. Carp pitched one inning, allowing five bases on balls and one earned run. Shortly after the All-Star break, Carp requested that the Red Sox trade him. The request made news after the Red Sox traded veteran pitcher

Jake Peavy Jacob Edward Peavy (born May 31, 1981) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Diego Padres, Chicago White Sox, Boston Red Sox, and San Francisco Giants. He batted and threw right- ...

to the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Y ...

on July 26. Carp was designated for assignment by the Red Sox on August 1.

Texas Rangers

Carp was claimed on waivers by the Texas Rangers on August 3, 2014. On August 30, the Rangers designated Carp for assignment. He elected free agency in October 2014.

Washington Nationals

On January 13, 2015, Carp signed a minor league deal with the

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...

. He declined a minor league assignment in early April, and became a free agent.

Los Angeles Dodgers

On April 25, 2015, he signed a minor league contract with the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

and was assigned to the Triple-A

Oklahoma City Dodgers The Oklahoma City Dodgers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. They are located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and play their home games at Chickasaw Bricktown Ba ...

. He had only two hits in 22 at-bats for Oklahoma City and was released on May 7.

Baltimore Orioles

On March 4, 2016, the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

signed Carp to a minor league deal, pending a physical. He was released on April 1, 2016.

New Britain Bees

On July 12, 2019, Carp signed with the

New Britain Bees The New Britain Bees are an American collegiate summer baseball team based in New Britain, Connecticut. They are a member of the Futures Collegiate Baseball League (FCBL), a wood-bat league with teams in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connectic ...

of the independent Atlantic League of Professional Baseball.

High Point Rockers

On November 6, 2019, Carp was selected by the

High Point Rockers The High Point Rockers are an American professional baseball team based at Truist Point ballpark in High Point, North Carolina, which is part of the Piedmont Triad region. They are members of the South Division of the Atlantic League of Profession ...

in the

dispersal draft. He did not play a game for the team because of the cancellation of the 2020 ALPB season due to the

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickly ...

pandemic and became a free agent after the year. On April 6, 2021, Carp re-signed with the Rockers for the 2021 season. However, he did not make the team out of spring and was released prior to the season.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Carp, Mike 1986 births Living people Seattle Mariners players Boston Red Sox players Texas Rangers players Gulf Coast Mets players Hagerstown Suns players North Shore Honu players Scottsdale Scorpions players St. Lucie Mets players Binghamton Mets players Tacoma Rainiers players High Desert Mavericks players Pawtucket Red Sox players Baseball players from Long Beach, California Major League Baseball first basemen Caribes de Anzoátegui players Oklahoma City Dodgers players New Britain Bees players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela